1. my dog -one of the best things to ever come into my life, (still challenging at times), but man, he makes me laugh. he has begun burying his bone in the backyard and will proudly come to me with a nose covered in dirt every few hours.
2. my new lawn mower. it’s quiet, it’s green, it weighs 17 pounds, it’s non-polluting and it doesn’t ever give off toxic fumes.
3. biodegradable dog poo bags
4. seeds -i am planting them everywhere because they are cheap and practically effortless. this week I am also creating a large quantity of seed bombs to be handed out by my publisher at Bookexpo next month. how lucky i am to in part be playing with dirt and clay for a living.
5. rooibos tea -so good with milk and honey.
6. ed abbey -traipsing through the utah desert with him has made my life more full this week. this one is going on my shelf as one of my favourites that I will return to again and again, like May Sarton or Emily Carr.
7. Kiva -based on the concept of “microfinancing”, created by nobel prize winner Mohammed Yunus, kiva is a company that lets you connect with and loan money (interest free) to unique small businesses in the developing world. you can “sponsor a business” and help the world’s working poor make great strides towards economic independence. watch the 15 min. documentary here. having had people to help me during the course of my career, it feels so great that I can now do the same for others, in effect sharing my success. i am hooked.
8. worsted witch -any hesitation i had in sharing my political beliefs in the online world have fallen away after seeing the unabashedly direct and heartfelt offerings of Jasmin. i am humbled and excited everytime i visit.
9. reading about andalusia -where i will be in about a months time.
10. dinner at Defazio’s pizza in Troy NY -picture a cute little hole in the wall pizza joint with checkered table cloths, and an old fashioned italian deli next door. the owners are quite old now and eat dinner EVERY NIGHT in their own restaurant! it’s the sweetest thing ever, (there are only 8 tables and it is always packed). now picture homemade organic sauce, pizza crust, pesto, and pasta. You can even bring your own wine to have with dinner. I would eat there every night too if it was mine. I will try and take some photos of it for you.
12:11 pm
very nice !! I’ve got some cute plantations too :)
12:25 pm
Have to wholeheartedly agree with numbers 1 and 3!
1:49 pm
another great post.
2:35 pm
Thank you Keri for continuing to be such an inspiration!
4:31 pm
Thank *you* Keri for all the beautiful things you bring into the world. :)
8:28 pm
Have you read Chris Stewart’s “Driving Over Lemons” (about Andalucia)?
8:29 pm
Thanks for this wonderful post Keri — wow, such interesting stuff! We are about to buy a house that will probably have a lawn (hmmm, haven’t had one of those for awhile) and I was just thinking this morning, “I wonder what’s out there in terms of push mowers….” I love the idea of sponsoring a business in a developing country too.
You’re great.
Caroline
9:19 pm
hooray! I’ve been trying to convince everyone I know to get one of those push mowers (which is more of a battle than it should be). We’ve had one for 13 years and it’s still going strong. In Australia our lawn grows pretty fast at times, so once a year we hire a “real” mower (or borrow one from a neighbour) just to take it closer to the roots again. Not sure if that’s an issue when it snows over winter…
anyway- you forgot to mention that it’s great exercise!
It’s ironic that your seasons are the opposite to ours and yet garden-wise we are both waking up… As the Summer breaks and it starts to rain again my gardening moves from “try to keep things alive” to “go crazy and plant stuff”…
My work day is spent with words and people and rush and indoors. Gardening is the balancer of all those things… so necessary. Nice to share it with a (sort of) stranger.
9:16 am
you have me completely intrigued by seed balls. I went to the link and saw the post, but there isn’t an explanation as to what to do with them once they’ve dried…….
please fill me in! :)
thanks!
9:26 am
hi michelle,
seed ball/bombs have a variety of uses. often used as a form of “guerilla gardening” to add some life to neglected or abandoned spaces, or providing food in unexpected places. i personally use them in a beautification context, for places that need a little sprucing up. because of the materials used the bombs they will only germinate when the conditions are right, (ie when water and sunlight are added). this makes them perfect for throwing into fenced off areas, (abandoned lots).
they were first created by masanobu fukuoka, advocate of “natural farming”, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Masanobu_Fukuoka
9:26 am
hi michelle,
seed ball/bombs have a variety of uses. often used as a form of “guerilla gardening” to add some life to neglected or abandoned spaces, or providing food in unexpected places. i personally use them in a beautification context, for places that need a little sprucing up. because of the materials used the bombs they will only germinate when the conditions are right, (ie when water and sunlight are added). this makes them perfect for throwing into fenced off areas, (abandoned lots).
they were first created by masanobu fukuoka, advocate of “natural farming”, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Masanobu_Fukuoka
11:02 am
Hi – I was introduced to your ultra-creative blog through your interview on Hip Tranquil Chick. I just wanted to say that I enjoy visiting. It’s such an inspiration. :) I love the 10 things you can’t get enough of… Good concept, perhaps I’ll write about my 10!
2:44 pm
amen … AMEN … AMEN!!!!!! I’m turning things around in my life and your musings and reminders and snippets of art and life help me stay on my path. And I feel you on the Worsted Witch. AMEN!
Thank you for your awesomeness.
;)
5:43 pm
Keri,
Are You going to be at Book Expo this year? That would be so exciting!
–Kelly (a reader in NYC)
5:46 pm
thank you very nice topic, thankks:)
6:25 pm
Troy New York! “The home town of Uncle Sam” My realatives live very near Troy, I’ll have to try Defazio’s sometime myself :]
3:48 am
I’m drinking rooibos right now. ;)
5:20 pm
thank you very nice topic, thankss
6:44 pm
Dogs enhance and delight and what is life without a litte challenge now and again?
Loved your image….new growth and hope.
7:15 pm
cheers to clean air gardening! we have had that mower for several summers now and love it too… another great point is that our neighbors love it because it is so pleasant and quiet.
beautiful photo of your plantings too. this is such
an exciting time with everything ready to grow and bloom…
8:54 pm
The Kiva project is ama-azing. I’m going to find some little businesses to support, thanks to your post and link!
7:36 am
Andalucia. You are so lucky and I’m so jealous. Def don’t go without reading Driving Over Lemons – one for the plane maybe!
11:05 pm
Kerri,
I will also be at BookExpo next month and I would love to meet you! I would also love to check out your seed bombs!
My name is Chrisitna Katz and my book is Writer Mama for Writer’s Digest Books.
I will bring my copy of your book in case I can find you! I’d love an autograph. You have been a big inspiration.
Thank you!
2:13 am
I have returned to your journal after a little break, and I just wanted to tell you how inspiring and lovely it is. I especially love the lists of things you like.
Andalusia is quite incredible. I wish I was in Troy, rather than the other side of the world, just so I could go to Defazio’s.
12:32 pm
Hi Keri, I’m so happy about your dog :) I think dogs make me a better and happier person.
7:25 am
12:15 pm
thanks for introducing me to Kiva. It´s such a great idea.
I hope you´re finding good info about Andalucía. I´ll
- anti-advertising
- create a thing a day month
- drawings
- fortunes
- inspirations
- journal
- links
- projects
- quotes
- sketchbook
- ecstatic flailing
- Ways to Reduce our Reliance on Corporations (and exposure to ads)
- How I Discovered my Secret Powers (redux)
- Secrets shared
- How to be a Guerilla Artist
- How to Start as an Illustrator
- Seven Steps to Getting Published
- 100 Ideas
- The Artist’s Survival Kit
- drawing faq
- 10 ways to infuse your work with your personality
